354: Chapter 354 Teach Me

The priest pulled himself together and reported, "Reporting to the General, this is an emissary sent by the Celestial Gods. The emissary's hair is blue."

"How do you know that? You've never seen one yourself. Couldn't it just be a whim of the person who painted it?"

"No! That's impossible!"

The priest hurriedly said with a serious expression, "Other paintings might be fabricated, but the Celestial Gods are the deities of our Shamanism. All paintings of them are based on historical records!"

"You mean there are written records?"

"Of course! Our Darkhan Pasture temple has archives containing information about the Celestial Gods and the divine emissaries..."

The priest looked proud. "As far as I know, not even the Wudugan Temple has these archives."

"Oh? Why is that?" Lin Xiao asked, intrigued.

"It's simple. The Wudugan Temple is too close to the Mobei Royal Court. War is frequent there, and throughout history, the power of many Grand Shamans was not enough to preserve these precious archives."

"On the contrary, our side in Darkhan Pasture hasn't been affected much by the flames of war, which is why they were preserved."

Lin Xiao suddenly understood and said, "Bring them all out. Find the information regarding the Celestial Gods and the divine emissaries."

Princess Meng Xi asked, puzzled, "Lin Xiao, the Celestial Gods having blue hair, does that have any significance? As far as I know, the hair and eye colors of Hu Merchants from the Western Regions vary greatly."

"People from the Western Regions are different from us, but blue... that is far too different."

Lin Xiao couldn't explain it to Princess Meng Xi. According to biochemical mechanisms, it is impossible for humans to naturally have blue hair.

Could this "Celestial God" actually dye their hair?

After waiting for a while, the priest ordered people to bring over thick sheepskin scrolls.

After searching through them, they selected some ancient written records that included simple illustrations.

Princess Meng Xi looked at them and nodded, "That's right, it is indeed recorded that the emissaries sent by the Celestial Gods had blue hair..."

Lin Xiao muttered to himself, could they really not be human?

"Huh?"

Princess Meng Xi frowned, as if she had seen something else.

Lin Xiao quickly asked, "What is it? Is there something else?"

Princess Meng Xi became interested and said, "It is recorded here that every time an emissary appeared, it was during the coldest season."

"Only during the coldest times, by going to Alimu Mountain to pray and offer sacrifices, is there a chance for divine grace to descend."

"And during the spring, summer, and autumn seasons, there has never been a record of divine miracles descending..."

The priest on the side nodded and said, "Correct. Only the most pious and fearless believers have the chance to see the Celestial Gods."

Lin Xiao couldn't help but frown, wondering how much truth there was to these records of Shamanism.

Could it be that the founders of the Five Great Sects, the Five Ancestors of Celestial Beings, also had blue hair?

If they really aren't "human," then being enemies with the Heavenly Palace becomes even more dangerous.

And it would make sense that they could come up with strange techniques like the "Drug-Man Art" and the "Huitian Great Method."

Lin Xiao then instructed Princess Meng Xi to continue gathering information about the Celestial Gods and to send him a message whenever there was any new information.

By the time they came out of the temple, it was already evening without them realizing it.

The two rode their horses back, without bringing any attendants, which seemed to be intentional on Princess Meng Xi's part.

"Lin Xiao, now that the Dingxi Protectorate has been established here, are you... going back to Cang Province?"

In the afterglow of the setting sun, Princess Meng Xi looked at Lin Xiao from the side, her eyes filled with a hint of reluctance.

"Yes. On the second day of the second lunar month, the Daoist sects have invited me to observe the Tianwu Grand Tournament. If I don't go back soon, I won't make it in time."

Lin Xiao said, "I will have Lu Sanchuan guard this place for a while. Don't worry, no one will dare to touch you."

Princess Meng Xi gave a coquettish snort, "I think the General is more afraid that I might cause trouble, right?"

"Haha! It's the same thing!" Lin Xiao laughed candidly.

Princess Meng Xi chuckled, her smile as charming as a blooming Gesang flower on the grassland.

"Lin Xiao, do you know? I envy the Holy Maiden."

"What, do you want to be the Grand Shaman too?" Lin Xiao shook his head with a smile, "That won't work; your aptitude is too poor..."

"That's not it at all!"

Princess Meng Xi pouted and said, "I just envy her for being able to walk into your heart..."

Lin Xiao was puzzled, "Didn't I reject her?"

"You did reject her, but it was only temporary. You want her to perform well to help you consolidate your rule over Mobei."

"But sooner or later, you will accept her because, in your heart, she is a woman you can trust."

Princess Meng Xi said this with a self-deprecating smile, "And as for me, I have no chance anymore..."

"Don't be so pessimistic. Didn't I say, it depends on your performance, we'll talk about it later." Lin Xiao said with a smile.

"No need to lie to me. I know that since the first time I met you, when I disguised myself to test you, you haven't trusted me."

Princess Meng Xi sighed, "Between you and me, it's destined to be just a relationship of using and being used..."

Lin Xiao fell silent.

Indeed, the impression Princess Meng Xi gave him was that she was shrewd, selfish, and an egoist. Although there was a warmth of human feeling, it was not much.

She would be an excellent queen, but she would not be a trustworthy wife like Xiao Qingxuan.

Xiao Qingxuan would give up the empire for him, because that empire was not worth clinging to, nor did it bring her any happiness.

But Princess Meng Xi would never give up her throne to marry him.

Because, for Princess Meng Xi, this was something she had fought hard to obtain. Ever since she was old enough to understand, she had been striving for this position!

"Lin Xiao! Look!"

Princess Meng Xi's eyes suddenly lit up. She dismounted and ran to the nearby wilderness where the ice and snow had not yet melted.

She bent down and picked a pale pink flower from the ground.

"This is the ice flower of our Darkhan Pasture. It only blooms when the ice and snow are about to melt, as if it's in a hurry to tell the people of the grassland that the cold winter has passed... It's beautiful, isn't it?"

Looking at the queen holding the flower and smiling brilliantly at him in the afterglow of the sunset, Lin Xiao recalled Zhao Caiwei's words from yesterday in a daze.

If she hadn't been born on the grassland, born into the royal family, she would just be an ordinary, twenty-something young girl.

"Lin Xiao... could... could you help me put this flower in my hair?"

Princess Meng Xi gathered her courage, her face slightly flushed, and said with eager eyes, "It's not too much to ask to satisfy a little request from your puppet queen, right?"

Lin Xiao didn't say anything, just dismounted and walked over.

He took the flower and gently tucked it into Princess Meng Xi's hair...

Just as Princess Meng Xi was blushing, her lips slightly pursed, she suddenly heard Lin Xiao say:

"I won't marry you now, but from this moment on, you don't need to envy the Holy Maiden anymore."

Princess Meng Xi looked up, her beautiful eyes revealing disbelief. It was excitement, surprise, and joy from the bottom of her heart!

"Re...really?" Princess Meng Xi felt like she was dreaming. She had already planned to give up, fearing that the man was just lying to her.

"I thought about it carefully. You, this puppet queen, can't go on without getting married forever. Better keep the benefits within the family!" Lin Xiao teased.

Princess Meng Xi punched the man in the chest with a pink fist, "That's how it should be! You're only realizing it now!?"

As she spoke, Princess Meng Xi started to make a move.

"Hey, hey, hey! What are you doing!? We're out in the middle of nowhere..."

"The women of our great grassland don't care about such things! You're almost leaving, so I have to seize the time and have you teach me martial arts!"

"..."

She really had understood!!